Lesson 4

Have your class further investigate these 'first-time events' towards an understanding of how some Indian music works and, if possible, how it reflects attributes of Indian history, philosophy and culture. As students explore this and related music the understandings they gain might be employed later in this unit of work, to inform their own original creative work.

While it might be almost impossible to support your class in re-creating or reconstructing the 'first time' event of Raga Lalit itself, students ought to be able to gain some understanding of at least some of the theory of Indian music by learning other more accessible Indian songs. Select one of the bhajans to introduce the vocal performance of Indian music to students. A bhajan is a devotional song whose text praises Hindi gods and relates stories associated them.

If presenting the music presented on this page is beyond your capacity seek out CD's and tapes of a range of Indian musical genres from friends, libraries and Indian organisations in your region. Increased familiarity with the sounds of Indian instruments, vocal technique and musical format can only increase 'aesthetic satisfaction and response'.

An introduction to 'First time Indian musical events' might include...

'Om Jai Jagdeesh Hare'

'Tu Dayalu Deen Ho'

Dane Dane Pe Likha Hae

Encourage students to find recordings of any genre of Indian music, at home, in libraries or from any other source.

Watch for Indian films at your local 'arts' theatre or on TV channels like SBS.

Seek out Indian musicians within the local community. Most larger towns and cities have cultural groups who maintain a performance interest in their own music. Invite these people to perform for your class or, better still, for the whole school.